Making Good: An Inspirational Guide to Being an Artist Craftsman

Forty-one craftspeople answer the questions of who, what, when, where, and how he or she started and maintains a career in the arts. Accompanied by more than 260 photos showing the artists, their work spaces, and their creations, each interview gives experience-based answers to anyone interested in the lives of artists. For students and career changers to makers at all levels, this resource captures insight into the entrepreneurial nature of living a life in the arts—and the choices, bits of luck, joys, and tenacity one needs to overcome hurdles in useful and surprising ways. The 41 artists from across the United States work in many types of media; they include, for example, woodturner Dixie Biggs, fiber artist Carol Eckert, metalsmith Pat Flynn, glass artist Judith Schaecter, and ceramist Mara Superior. As their answers unfold, what develops is a collection of independent voices that follow unique, creative journeys in the arts, despite the twists and turns life takes. This distillation of expertise is a valuable resource to all who are considering a creative career.

Jacklyn Scott was born into an artistic family and spent most of her childhood in her mother’s clay studio, volunteering at craft centers, and, during college, working at Peters Valley in the summers. Her exposure to the beauty of handmade objects and the interesting people who make them led her to study and earn a degree at the Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia, where she explored her many interests in printmaking, sculpture, and ceramics. She now works full-time at Hood College in Frederick, Maryland, as the Studio Manager for the Art Department where she is currently working towards her MFA in Ceramic Arts. Jacklyn is eager to find and make her way as a professional artist.

Kristin Müller, artist and executive director at Peters Valley School of Craft, approaches all aspects of her work as a designer resourcefully and adaptively based on lessons learned along the way. Prior to establishing her studio in northeast Pennsylvania she wore many hats working as a studio artist in New Haven, Connecticut, as adjunct faculty at three colleges, and as education director, curator, and ceramics instructor at Brookfield Craft Center. She wrote The Potter’s Studio Handbook: A Guide to Hand Built and Wheel-Thrown Ceramics(Quarry) and recently completed an MFA in ceramics at Hood College, where she teaches for the graduate program. Her work is exhibited widely and her ceremonial tea bowls are held in private collections.Visit www.kristinmuller.com and www.petersvalley.org.

Tommy Simpson is an “imaginist” who works in nearly every medium, including woodworking, painting, printmaking, clay, woodcarving, bookmaking, jewelry, and even prose. In each work of art there is an identifiable style that “puzzles together” the artist’s personal and cultural references into a signature blend of joyfulness and subtle commentary. “ The ultimate goal,” Tommy says, “is to bring the artwork to life, so that the viewer can identify the human spirit behind the work, and experience its poetry.” Simpson’s artwork is exhibited nationally, including at the Renwick Gallery at the American Art Museum at the Smithsonian Institute, Washington, DC; the Museum of Art and Design, New York; and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. His work can be found in many collections worldwide.

Stuart Kestenbaum is former director of the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, and in 2016 was named poet laureate for Maine.